Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri was promoted as a lieutenant colonel in the Philippine Army Reserve Command on April 8, 2024. (Photo from his office)
MANILA, Philippines — Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri said one of the reasons he joined the Philippine Army Reserve Command is to send a message against bashers who questioned the sincerity of members of the Senate when it comes to the West Philippine Sea dispute.
Zubiri was promoted to lieutenant colonel in a brief ceremony at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City on Monday.
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“Ginawa ko na rin po ito dahil alam nyo, online, maraming nagba-bash sa mga senador. Ang sabi nila, ‘Puro lang kayo dakdak. Puro lang kayo salita. Ano pa magagawa ninyo?’” Zubiri said of his enlistment in an ambush interview after the ceremony.
“I also did it because, you know, online there are many persons bashing the senators. They say: ‘You are all talk. You just keep on talking. What else can you do?’” Zubiri said in Filipino in an ambush interview after the ceremony.
Zubiri and five of his colleagues wore t-shirts printed with the words “West PH Sea” during the Fiba (International Basketball Federation) World Cup last year, drawing mixed reactions from social media users.
Beijing asserts sovereignty in the entire South China Sea, including most of the West Philippine Sea, even if such a claim has been effectively invalidated by a July 2016 international tribunal ruling that stemmed from a case filed by Manila in 2013.
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“I took it to the next step and I enlisted with the reservist force to show the commitment and love for our country. We will prepare. We will train for any eventuality,” Zubiri said.
Zubiri also noted that other senators are also military reservists — Robin Padilla, Francis Tolentino, Ronald Dela Rosa, Joel Villanueva, and Loren Legarda.
“The beauty of it is that it is now also a challenge for us that we must take a step further. It’s not just words. We are not just armchair warriors, but we are also ready to help the AFP, our government, whatever may happen to our country,” he said.